


Mother

by BibiannaOddey1850



Series: Aurora Van der Linde Drabbles [6]
Category: Red Dead Redemption
Genre: Arthur is itchy tho, Dutch is keeping secrets, Filipino Character, Gen, Hosea finally breaks down, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, Light Angst, What Was I Thinking?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-03
Updated: 2019-01-03
Packaged: 2019-10-03 14:05:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 954
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17285471
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BibiannaOddey1850/pseuds/BibiannaOddey1850
Summary: "What was Mama like?"





	Mother

"What was Mama like?"

The question surprised Dutch enough that he swallowed his cigarette smoke. He coughed, spewing out spit and a bit of phlegm as he did so. Once composed, he fixed his posture and looked down at the five-year-old sitting beside him.

"Well, why the sudden interest in her?" Dutch asked. Aurora stared down at her small hands; she then arranged them next to Dutch's own fair-colored ones, and he noted the differences between their skin tones.

"Mac and Davey said that Mama was a slave, is that true?"

"Now, you listen to me, Aurora Jane Van der Linde: your mother was a strong and clever woman, despite who she was and what she did. She wasn't a slave," he explained. "Don't let those Callander Boys fill your head with nonsense, understand?"

"Okay," Aurora nodded.

"Good," Dutch stated with finality. "Go play somewhere else; daddy needs to go over his papers and maps, so he can buy you that porcelain doll you've been eyeing these past couple of weeks."

His daughter practically beamed. She gave him a quick peck on the chin, before waddling away to bother someone else.

* * *

"Uncle Hosea?"

She peered into the tent belonging to the man. A somber feeling was present in his dwelling; it had been months since Bessie unexpectedly passed away from cholera, and while Hosea claims to have moved on, the heaviness in his shoulders spoke otherwise.

"Lookin' for someone, Rory?" She turned; a smile was plastered to her face upon recognizing the voice.

"Arthur! Have you seen Uncle Hosea anywhere?"

The man rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah, saw him by the lake this morning, but he said he needed to be alone."

"Oh," she frowned in a way that could compete with Miss Grimshaw.

"Need somethin' from him?" Arthur had to ask.

"Arthur, do you know who my Mama was?" The man took an immediate intake of breath. "Papa said she was a strong and clever woman, but he didn't even tell me everything!"

Arthur eventually took his hat off and scratched the top of his head. "I'm not so sure I should tell you everythin', Rory."

"So you do know something about my Mama?"

Cornered, the outlaw did not have much of a choice, but he could give her a little amount of information, if it got her to stop asking questions. "Well, I know that she was a stubborn kind of woman; she would beat the...uh...spit out of a man if he would lay just a finger on her. Heck, she was the one who taught me how to wield two guns and reload them quickly in a fight."

Aurora's gold eyes brightened in childlike admiration. "Really? Was she better than Papa?"

"She saved him from the law several times. Without her, I didn't think Dutch would've survived this long." He moved to scratch his chin, but thought otherwise, "anyway, you run along now, bein' around you is makin' me itchy for some goddamn reason."

"Okay," Aurora muttered. As she waddled away from him, however, she stumbled on a rock, and let out a curse: "Goddamn!"

"Aurora!"

* * *

Before long, Aurora's little stroll took her to the edge of the lake, where she spotted Hosea sitting upon a large driftwood. She was hesitant to approach him, since Arthur did mention he needed to be alone. But then, he waved her over, and she happily ran up to his side.

Without waiting for him to ask what she needed, she instantly asked, "Uncle Hosea, do you know who my Mama was?"

Unlike Dutch and Arthur, Hosea smiled and pulled her onto his lap. "Of course I do; her name was Maria Milagros Corazon, and she came to America from the West of the Pacific."

"Really? How did she arrive here?" Aurora inquired, her curiosity was gladly pleased by the turn of events.

"On a Spanish Galleon called _El Caminante_. She was, unfortunate to say, a flesh-peddler's goods. This peddler tried to sell her to popular...houses in California, but an old doctor and his wife purchased her instead, and took her with them on their journey east." Hosea stated.

"And how did she meet Papa?" The little girl squeaked.

"Your Papa...well, they met under unfortunate circumstances, so that's another story to tell. In any case, Dutch convinced her to come with him, and she did. Turns out, she was very skillful once she joined us, and with her profound knowledge in anatomy, Milagros could heal as well as fatally injure a person if she wanted to."

Aurora's smile was profound and full of wonder. "Mama seems like an awe-inspiring person!"

"That she was, Rory...that she was." Hosea trailed off and began to stare blankly into the lake. When a fish leaped out of the water to catch a dragonfly, he snapped out of his reverie. "Anyway, your mother eventually had you, and...well...there's a reason why she's no longer with us, and I'd honestly like to say...it wasn't your fault, Aurora, it never was."

The girl remained quiet for a moment. Then, she spoke, "I'm glad you told me, Uncle Hosea."

"It was a pleasure, my darling. Remembering Milagros seemed to have removed a heavy weight from my chest," said Hosea. "If you want, Arthur can sketch a picture of her for you."

"I didn't know Arthur could draw!" Aurora exclaimed. Hosea laughed and ruffled her hair, enjoying every bit of the moment. "I need to go find him then! I'll see you back at camp, Uncle Hosea!"

The older gentleman waved as Aurora ran off. But once she was farther away from him to notice anything, Hosea pressed a hand to his face, and cried.

**Author's Note:**

> Just so you know, a bit of these drabbles are going to make it in the main storyline BLACK DAWN.
> 
> So kinda keep your eyes peeled for the allusions~


End file.
